Mount Elbrus is part of Caucasus Mountain Range that stands on the border of two continental plates, Europe and Asia. It has two summits, which the West Summit (5,642m) is a little bit higher than the East Summit (5,621m). Elbrus is one of the Seven Summits representing Europe.
Mount Elbrus is part of Caucasus Mountain Range that stands on the border of two continental plates, Europe and Asia. It has two summits, which the West Summit (5,642m) is a little bit higher than the East Summit (5,621m). Elbrus is one of the Seven Summits representing Europe. The central Caucasus Range have a high deposit of mineral, proven from the water that came from the mountains. The water sources have been cleverly utilized, not only for drink but also for healing. In Kislovodsk, there’s a sanatorium that use this mineral water for healing therapy. The water source called Narzan. Even the town we passed on the way to Elbrus is named Mineralnye Vody, which means mineral water. There are two ways to get to the summit of Mount Elbrus, one is from the north and the more popular one is from the south. Starting from Terskol village, there are more facilities in this area such as ski-lift that going up to 3,800m and snow-cat that can be used to cut some distance on summit day. Whilst there are none like this on the north route which make it more challenging.
Glacier travel skills needed to climb Mount Elbrus. Though it’s not a main issue. You can train to walk on crampons prior to expedition if possible. Or else, there’s enough time to train there as well other skills training on the glacier. Altitude can be the main issue because the rate of ascend will be quite fast. Summit day will be long and demanding also. Training should focus on cardiovascular capability. you can do running two to three times a week for 45 minutes to an hour per session. Running on a route that have elevation gain will be a lot better, or use treadmill if there’s no such terrain in your hometown. You can change one of your running sessions in a week with cycling or swimming and especially you need to do also stair climbing with at least 10kg pack. It will be a good cross training. Besides that, muscle training is advisable. Strengthen your upper and lower body muscle, as well core muscle. You can do it at the gym or do your own set of push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, plank, etc. In addition, go weekend hiking regularly. It can be started with 8 km round trip hike with roughly 6kg pack, ascending and descending 600m, in less than 2.5 hours. The aim is to ascend 900m carrying an average pack of 10 kg in 3 hours. To reach it, try to increase the difficulty of your training in some way, either by adding weight to your pack (no more than 10 percent per week) or by completing the hike in a shorter amount of time. The capability to acclimatized are different for each person. So, building up your fitness even more will not be a waste. Just make sure you don’t injure yourself by overtraining and always have enough rest. Train 6 month before will increase the rate of success. But if you don’t have that much time, train at least 3 months before.
No | Name | Amt |
---|---|---|
1 | Trekking Boots | 1 pair |
2 | Double Boots | 1 pair |
3 | Crampons | 1 pair |
4 | Gaiters | 1 pair |
5 | Trekking Pole | 1 pair |
6 | Ice Axe | 1 |
7 | Climbing Harness | 1 |
8 | 1.5 meters of 7mm prusik/accessory cord | 2 |
9 | Locking carabiners | 3 |
10 | Booties (optional) | 1 pair |
11 | Wool or Synthetic socks | 3 pair |
12 | Liner socks | 2 pair |
13 | Midweight Baselayer Top (amount based on preferences) | 3 |
14 | Midweight Baselayer Bottom (amount based on preferences) | 2 |
15 | Trekking/Soft Shell pants | 2 |
16 | Soft Shell Jacket/puffy | 1 |
17 | Hard Shell Jacket w/ hood | 1 |
18 | Hard Shell pants | 1 |
19 | Insulated jacket/down jacket | 1 |
20 | Insulated synthetic pants | 1 |
21 | Baseball cap | 1 |
22 | Beanie | 1 |
23 | Buff (amount based on preferences) | 2 |
24 | Glacier glasses | 1 |
25 | Ski Goggles | 1 |
26 | Lightweight synthetic liner gloves | 1 pair |
27 | Mediumweight gloves/Ski Gloves | 1 pair |
28 | Insulated Mittens | 1 pair |
29 | 30L Backpack | 1 |
30 | Sleeping bag at least -20°C | 1 |
31 | Self-Inflating pad (optional) | 1 pair |
32 | Headlamp with spare batteries | 1 |
33 | Sunscreen, SPF 40 or better | 1 |
34 | Lip screen, SPF 30 | 1 |
35 | 1 Litre water bottle or water bladder | 2 |
36 | 1 Litre thermos | 1 |
37 | Pee Bottle (optional) | 1 |
38 | Toiletry bag | 1 |
39 | Large Duffel Bag | 1 |
40 | First aid kit and special medications (if any) | 1 |
41 | Camera | 1 |